The Cabinet of Ministers plans to upgrade 200 locomotives and 800 passenger cars and repair 5,000 kilometers of railway tracks within five years.
This is stated in the government’s action program for the five years, the CFTS portal reports.
"In five years, 200 units of traction rolling stock, 800 passenger cars, 10 and Intercity electric trains should be upgraded, and 5,000 kilometers of railway infrastructure will be repaired and upgraded," the document states.
In addition, to improve the condition of railway stations and improve the quality of services, the Ministry of Infrastructure plans to attract investments through public-private partnership.
In particular, it plans to attract investment in the Kyiv Central Passenger Railway Station, the Mykolaiv railway station, and the Zaporizhia railway station, which, according to the government’s action plan, should reduce the time that passengers and shippers spend on rail transport.
As the CFTS portal reported, Ukrzaliznytsia estimates the amount of investments necessary for implementation of the company's strategy over a period of four years at UAH 150 billion.
The promising areas of investment are development of port railway infrastructure, construction of logistics terminals on the border with the European Union, rolling stock, and development of passenger stations.
“Cargo owners are primarily interested in port infrastructure because a significant part of exports is transported by rail. Exporters are also interested in developing logistics terminals on the EU border, since cargo transshipment in Ukraine is cheaper than in Europe. Investments in freight rolling stock are of interest to, on the one hand, manufacturers of such products, which usually help Ukrzaliznytsia to get access to related loans, and, on the other hand, operators of private rolling stock, who invest in upgrade of their own freight-car fleets," said Anton Sabolevskyi, the director of the company’s strategic development and investment policy.
In addition, Ukrzaliznytsia’s director of strategic development considers development of passenger train stations as a promising area of investment.
"Pilot investment projects, the payback potential of which is very high, are already being developed," he added.